Young People We Need You
Acts 23
As we continue our verse-by-verse study through the book of Acts, chapter 23 reminds me of the critical role young people have in the Church. They are not just the future of the Church; they are the Church… right now! Paul’s nephew courageously exposes a plot to kill Paul, demonstrating bravery and wisdom. One’s age doesn’t limit their ability to make a significant impact in His kingdom. God used 8-year-old King Josiah to lead a nation, and He continues to use young people mightily today. Let’s move away from the thinking that young people must wait until they are older to contribute meaningfully and begin to look for ways they can serve now. Please don’t misunderstand me, I am not saying that the Church should be all about the young people and forget those of the “older” generations. Not at all. God wants to use every generation.
Living with a Clean Conscience.
In Acts 23, Paul stands before the Sanhedrin and asserts that he has lived with a clean conscience before God. It is so important that the same is true for us. When we maintain a clean conscience, free from hidden sin or hypocrisy, it provides confidence and peace. Friends, let’s strive to live transparently and honorably, keeping a short account before God and seeking His guidance in all we do.
Facing Persecution with Courage
Paul’s unwavering faith, despite all the threats against him and all the physical persecution, is such an encouragement and example to us. Over 40 men conspired to kill him, but God’s sovereignty prevailed. You and I won’t be without our enemies either. There will be many who come against you simply because of your faith. As a believer, you can expect scorn, ridicule, and persecution. Matthew 5:11–12 says, “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” Stand strong, knowing that God is with you in every trial and is working out all the details. Here for Paul, he had 470 soldiers ready to escort him safely to Rome! Glorious!
Connect with Calvary Church through our website or app for further engagement and resources. Together, we can empower the next generation to step into their God-given roles and make a lasting impact on the world.
Full Transcription
Amen. Open your Bibles with you to Acts 23 is where we are. Acts chapter 23. I’ve entitled our Bible study, “Young People, We Need You.” And there is this special part in this chapter of God using a young person. And I want to emphasize that in a very real way before us. But as we’re covering and following along with the Apostle Paul, he is in the midst of a deep trial. A hard time. You may forget that he’s in a trial because of the way that the text flows together from 22 to 23 and 24, but you’ll remember he’s at an all-time low in his Christian life.
He’s in Jerusalem, which is where his heart really wanted to be. He wanted to get to Jerusalem. God has been using him all throughout the Gentile region, preaching the Gospel, planting churches, lives changed, but where his heart of heart is, is Jerusalem. You’ll remember we learn in the book of Romans. He wrote to them and said, hey, look, “I would rather give up my own salvation and die eternally if it meant the Jews would be saved.” I mean, that’s his heart. His passion is to reach Jews and those that are in Jerusalem. So he waits 20 years to get there and finally arrives. Surprise! It’s not the way he thought it would be. His expectations weren’t met. He’s been maligned. He’s been arrested. He’s been beaten. Rumors are surrounding him. Lies are being told about him. They don’t want to hear him. And as he will learn. Even as we learn. God is still on the throne. This isn’t happening outside of God’s will.
He’s learning about the providential power and the protection of God Almighty. In the midst of difficulty, you could even say it for us, anything that comes into my life and comes into your life has passed through the providential power and protection of God Almighty. Or to remember that in a more simple way, everything that we experience in life has been Father-filtered. Sometimes we get into stuff and it feels like, “man, did God forget me?”
“Did I make a wrong turn.”
“Why are things so hard?”
“Maybe I’m being judged.”
“You know, maybe God’s coming down hard on me.”
But no, you know, we’ve learned there are times that not only does God allow situations living in this fallen world as much as he protects us from situations, but also Jesus will even lead us sometimes into a storm on the sea. In order for us to learn how to depend upon Him, learning how to die to ourselves, that only can come through difficulties. And that’s where Paul is. As you’ll remember last time, he’s preaching and they’re upset because he said, “and then look what God has done among the Gentiles.”
And they flip out and they scourge him. And we don’t know exactly how much and how long he was beaten, but they’re beating him. And then he’s delivered. Then he’s given a defense, and then the commanders come down because they flip out and they take him in, and we pick up right here on “the next day,” verse 30 of chapter 22.
“The next day, because he wanted to know for certain why he was accused by the Jews. The commander of the leader released him from his bonds and commanded the chief priests and all their counsel to appear brought Paul down and set him before them. And then Paul, looking earnestly at the council, said, men and brethren, I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day.”
Paul is standing now before the Sanhedrin, or what could be known as the Jewish religious leaders’ Supreme Court. These are the men that hold his life in the balance. It was a very intimidating time. Now not so much, probably for Paul, but in order to understand the scene, it’s a very intimidating thing to be able to stand before all these religious rulers that have heard about him, that are antagonistic toward him. And he stands there with confidence, just like you. You’re brought into difficult situations. You got hardships. You can stand there in confidence. The confidence that God is with you, standing with you. So he stands there. It says. He looks at them “earnestly.” And then I love this phrase. He says, “I have lived in all good conscience.” This is powerful. He stands before them and says, “You know, I have a clean conscience. I am telling you the truth. I’ve lived a life. Everything I’m about to share with you, that is my life. I’m not two people, I’m not three people, I have a clean conscience.” Which, when you come across a text like this, we got to stop, don’t we? And we just have to ask the question that’s already in the room, and that’s this: Do you have a clean conscience?
It’s really important for you and me to have a clean conscience. I mean, as I’ve processed this message and I’ve already taught it a couple of times, I can tell you today: I stand here with a clean conscience. And what does that mean? I’m not hiding anything. I don’t have anything to hide. I’m not dabbling in anything. No, don’t equate a clean conscience with like, perfect. I don’t stand here, “I’m a perfect man.” But I can say with absolute confidence before you, I have a clean conscience. Like there’s nothing I’m hiding. Nothing I’m trying to dabble in. You’re not seeing a different Ed than you, than Marie, would see at home, or the kids. Like, I have a clean conscience. And that’s how I want to live my life. There is no softer pillow to rest your weary head on than the faithfulness of God and a clean conscience. There’s no progress going to be made in your life unless you have a clean conscience, unless you come clean before the Lord, where you’re not hiding things and you’re not double-faced and hypocritical.
Like, this is what you want. And this is one of the things that gave Paul such strength. But even so, I love what Paul said later on in First Corinthians. You can just jot it down in chapter four, verse four. I’ll read it to you from the New Living , it says, “My conscience is clear, but that doesn’t prove I’m right. It is the Lord himself who will examine me and decide.” So it’s not just a clean conscience. God uses a clean conscience to give you confidence. It’s not just because, “well, I have a clean conscience,” no, “I’m right because of the righteousness of Christ and His presence in my life.” So notice what happens. Now Paul’s standing there and it says in verse two,
And the high priest Ananias commanded those who stood by him to strike him on the mouth. And Paul said to him, “God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! For you sit to judge me according to the law, and do you command me to be struck contrary to the law?” And then those who stood by said, “Do you revile God’s high priest?” And then Paul said, “I did not know, brethren, that he was the high priest; for it is written, ‘you shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people.’”
And so here’s the reward: Paul is perfectly, 100% in the will of God, sharing the truth before this large group of the Sanhedrin, the Jewish religious Supreme Court. And he says the truth, and he struck, and he’s “hit upside the head,” basically. And isn’t that what happens to us at times? You. There you are, you know, you’re just doing what God calls you to do. You’re obedient, like, there’s nothing. You’re just…and the reward for obedience is to get hit; and to get struck in some way; to have someone come against you. But that is life.
And it’s one of those passages in Paul’s life that causes controversy. It’s one of those controversial passages, probably not a real controversial one, but one nonetheless. And it’s here in verse five when Paul says, “I didn’t know, brethren, that he was the high priest.” Many people come to this and they want to be critical and say, well, you know, “Paul’s a liar; he knew; and so why is he writing this?” And maybe he’s not such a clean conscience and everything. And they come, and I would just say, “be careful.” Would you? Would you just be careful whether it comes to the Bible or each other? Be careful of jumping to conclusions. Because I don’t believe myself that he’s lying here. There are other options available. Rather than just saying, “oh, look at him, he’s lying.” He should know. I do agree. I do agree that he could know he’s the high priest. I mean, Paul’s a rabbi. He’s a chief of rabbis. He was studied, as we learned last time under Gamaliel, who was taught himself under the Rabbi Hillel, which was the most popular rabbi of the day. Paul was very smart and very knowledgeable. “How could he not know,” is the way the question goes, “that that was the high priest?”
Well, let me give you a couple reasons why he wouldn’t know: number one, it was a very tumultuous time. He’s been dragged here, he’s been dragged there. And the day previously, he just got beat half to death. And we don’t know how far. If it was he got all 40 stripes if he got three. But can you imagine two full grown muscular men taking a cat of nine tails, and with full force, beating him? I mean, he’s undergoing trauma and difficulty being torn to and fro. And on top of that, there’s very good evidence that Paul had a severe eye disease. In Galatians 4, he talked about his, “trial in the flesh.” In Galatians 6, he talked about “what large letters,” he had to write with. In first Corinthians, you’ll remember, he said he had this “thorn in the flesh,” that he begged God to take away, and God didn’t. And many people believe he may have contracted malaria, caused his eyes…so there’s…it’s a very strong possibility that he was unable to identify, with the robes and such, that this was the high priest. So we just have to be careful, jumping to all these types of conclusions before we do some homework.
And whether it’s with the Bible or it’s with each other. Do you know what the Bible says? “The first one that comes and shares his case, it seems to sound right, until his neighbor comes and reproves him” (Prov 18:17). And so we just want to be careful. It’s a possibility, I believe, Paul, when he says he didn’t know. And he quotes the scripture. Even so, Ananias, even Ananias as the high priest, was really not the high priest in a real, pure form. He held the office, but he was no man of God. He had the office in the title, but he was no man of God. He was a wicked, corrupt, manipulating man. He did not honor the office even though he held it. He was well known for his greed. The ancient Jewish historian Josephus tells of how Ananias would steal from the tithes that would go to the priest and take advantage of the people. And, you know, there are people like that in churches today where they hold the office, but they are no man of God, and they have the position in the title, but they’re in no way representing the God who gave the title. It’s man-made and man-constructed.
And so here, with Ananias, I guess in a technical way, which I don’t think applies, but in a technical way, he really wasn’t a real high priest. But Paul goes through, in verse six, come back and says, when Paul, he gets this moment,
When Paul perceived that one part were Sadducees and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, “Men and brethren, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee; concerning the hope and the resurrection of the dead I am being judged!” And when he had said this, a dissension arose between the Pharisees and the Sadducees; and the assembly was divided. For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection—and no angel or spirit; but the Pharisees confess both. Then there arose a loud outcry. And the scribes of the Pharisees’ party arose and protested, saying, “We find no evil in this man; but if a spirit or an angel has spoken to him, let us not fight against God.” Now when there arose a great dissension, the commander, fearing lest Paul might be pulled to pieces by them… Acts 23:6-10a
So, you know it’s no calm moment. They’re going to…they see he might be pulled to pieces, his arms ripped off his body when they would…when they saw that it says, “they commanded the soldiers to go down, take them by force from among them, and bring him into the barracks.” Paul is in the midst of this, and he’s a quick thinker. The Holy Spirit – he’s sensitive to the Holy Spirit. And he recognizes in the Sanhedrin that there are basically two groups of leaders, two groups. Sadducees had their own beliefs and Pharisees had their own beliefs, and he uses this, as he did with his citizenship, to further the gospel. And he notices that. And he asserts, although he really isn’t a Pharisee anymore in the sense that he’s moved on to follow Christ, but he asserts his past relationship with the Pharisees, and he speaks up and he says, “I am a Pharisee,” which stirred up the Pharisees to support him and back him. And because of that, now there’s a division, and he gets delivered again. And it’s amazing.
Now, the Sadducees, just for you Bible students, you need to know this, the Sadducees would be what we consider today, liberal, in their theology. They denied the possibility of life after death. They didn’t believe in the resurrection, as the text says. They didn’t believe in angels in the angelic realm. In the spirit realm, they believed in the total freedom of the will, uninfluenced by God or fate, and they were just really humanistic, even though they call themselves religious.
The Pharisees, on the other hand, would be what we would consider more conservative. They were Bible, or Torah, literalists, so they took the Bible literally. But of course, then they added traditions and they made up a bunch of rules and became very legalistic. They were committed strictly to observing the law, and all the traditions that they added to it; committed to carrying out the duties of the law like tithing and performing all the ceremonial washings. They came together in this religious body, but now Paul sees this and he takes advantage of it, and now they’re fighting with one another. And here are these religious rulers and leaders willing to pull Paul’s arms off.
None of them are really representing God, and they’re just only representing their own self-interest, which is for another Bible study at another time. But it’s important that we understand if God has placed you in a position of spiritual leadership, it is for God and not for you. It’s not for you. It’s not for you to do your thing. It’s not for you to take from people. It’s not for you to manipulate. It’s for you and me to represent Him. Remember Jesus said in Mark 10: 45 that “He came not to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” And so here they are. He’s delivered. He’s thrown in jail into the barracks. Notice with me next in verse 11, it says, “The following night the Lord stood by him and said, ‘Be of good cheer, Paul, for as you have testified for Me in Jerusalem, so you must also bear witness at Rome.’”
Now I began our Bible study by sharing with you that Paul is at an all-time low. And for some of you, reading the text before and after and, you know, reading ahead, you’re wondering, “where did you get that from, pastor?” How do you know he was at an all time low? This one verse is an indication of where Paul is emotionally. And you say, well, why?
Well, I want you to notice, first of all, that in the barracks Jesus came and encouraged Paul personally. Why? Because he needed it. Notice His first words. He tells Paul, “be of good cheer.” Why? Because Paul was discouraged. How wouldn’t you? I think I would be. I get my hopes up so high. Want to go to Jerusalem, want to see something, and, you know, “I don’t care if prophecies say I shouldn’t.” And, “all these difficulties I don’t care about, I think God’s going to use me in Jerusalem.” And then he’s not used much at all, at least visibly. It seems the exact opposite of what he wanted is what happened. Now he’s thrown in jail. He’s been beat. They want to kill him.
Jesus says, “Paul, be encouraged.” It’s going to be okay. Not only that, the second thing that He says to him is that, “You have testified for me in Jerusalem.” The second thing Paul needed to hear is, “You did the right thing.” Because, you know, you get in…when your expectations…you want to do something for God. You want to obey him. You want to jump in, but you got high expectations. And when your expectations aren’t met, like when it doesn’t go the way you thought it would be…I think as some of you right now, you’re looking at your life right now and you’re like, “it’s not the way I thought it would be at this age.”
“I didn’t think I’d be doing this.”
“I didn’t think it’d be that way.”
“I didn’t think I’d be raising my grandkids.”
“I didn’t think I’d be broke.”
“I didn’t think my business would fail.”
You’re just in that place, “I didn’t think….” This is what happens, the enemy would love to come to you and tell you that, “you’re a failure,” and, you know, “it’s all your fault.” But then he’s trying to cloud you from the providential sovereignty of God. That God is with you. And stepping out in faith is the right thing to do, even if it doesn’t work out the way you thought. And that’s what Paul needed to hear. You were faithful in Jerusalem. Yeah, but you don’t know. Nobody heard. Nobody listening. Here I am in jail. Jesus says, “no.” You don’t see it the way I see it. You were faithful. And He gives him one more thing with faith…with that encouragement, He gives Paul hope. How? He says, “I’m going to use you in Rome,” and you know what you can do with a statement like that? You can conclude, I’m getting out of jail! I’m going to be delivered!
I don’t know when and I don’t know how, but Jesus said, “Rome is still ahead.” It’s like, “Oh, yes!” And God met Paul in his all-time low. And God meets you and me if we’ll just listen. He’ll come to you in a dream and a vision. He’ll speak to you in His Word. He’ll meet you in your prayer life. He’ll have somebody send you a text, show up at your door, give you a phone call. And just like, “man, I’ve been praying for,” and share a Scripture. God is in the business, if you will, of encouraging His saints for the work of the ministry. And so here he is. He’s in a great time. He’s in a strong time. Verse 12 now, “And when it was day, some of the Jews banded together and bound themselves under an oath, saying that they would neither eat nor drink until they had killed Paul.” And you’re like, what? Now there’s a group, it says, verse 13, “there were more than forty who had formed this conspiracy.”
40 people now have decided, “hey, guys, let’s get together. Let’s talk about this. How about this? How about we make a commitment? We’re not going to eat or drink until we murder Paul. Yes! Yay! Let’s do that.” And now we have a murderous conspiracy against Paul. Verse 14, and this group,
Came to the chief priests and the elders, and said, “We have bound ourselves under a great oath that we will eat nothing until we’ve killed Paul. Now you, therefore, together with the council, suggest to the commander that he be brought down to you tomorrow, as though you were going to make further inquiries concerning him; but we’re ready to kill him before he comes near.” Acts 23:14-15
This is unbelievable. You know that the chief priests and elders should have said? “Are you guys out of your minds? You’re not killing Paul.” But they’re corrupt. And here they are, “we’re not going to eat or drink.” Now, if you read ahead, I’ll just give you the rest of the chapter here very briefly: Paul isn’t killed. The plot doesn’t come to pass, okay? It doesn’t happen. So let me just ask you this question. They committed to not eat or drink unless they killed Paul, but they didn’t kill Paul, so let’s say this: do you think all these 40 people died of starvation? So I just want you to answer it out loud. Do you think they really died of starvation? Yes or no? No! Me either.
You know why? Because they’re cowards. I know that much about them. They’re cowards. And really, that’s the essence of the devil. He’s a liar. He loves to intimidate. He loves to scare you. He loves to get you. And maybe send people to do that. But you know what? It’s not as much as you might think it is. God is greater than the devil. God is greater than the plots. God is greater than the threats. God is greater than the intimidations. Now, I know you know. Sometimes people do come to…people do weird, bad, sinful things, I know that. But most of the time it’s just the enemy messing with your head. That’s all it is, messing with your head. You know, because really, Paul doesn’t know anything about this yet. And so where is he? While all this is happening, he’s resting in the Lord. He’s trusting in God.
He has no idea that 40 cowards have come together and said, “You know what? We’re not going to eat until we kill Paul.” Whatever. I’m sure they snuck a little snicker bar here, and, you know, it’s like, “Oh, where’s Paul? I don’t know.” Like, listen, your strength in the Lord is much greater than the threats of the enemy. Never forget that. Trust in the Lord. But here’s where it gets really, really cool in this. Notice, in verse 16 now, “And when Paul’s sisters son,” which would make him what? Paul’s nephew.
Paul’s sister’s son heard of their ambush, he went and entered the barracks and told Paul. Then Paul called one of the centurions to him and said, “take this, young man to the commander, for he has something to tell him.” So he took him, brought him to the commander, and said, “Paul the prisoner called me to him and asked me to bring this young man to you. He has something to say to you.” Then the commander took him by the hand, went aside, and asked privately, “What is it that you have to tell me?” And he said, “The Jews have agreed to ask that you bring Paul down to the council tomorrow, as though they were going to inquire more fully about him. But do not yield to them, for more than forty of them lie in wait for him, men who have bound themselves by an oath that they’ll neither eat nor drink till they have killed him; and now they are ready, waiting for the promise from you.” So the commander let the young man depart, and commanded him. “Tell no one that you have revealed these things to me.”
Acts 23:16-22
And in this time of encouragement behind the scenes, Satan definitely has his helpers. Paul was plagued by enemies his whole life, Jews and Gentiles, angry at him for sharing the gospel. And this oath comes to us from the same Greek root word that we get the word anathema. They said, you know, if we don’t fulfill this, let God curse us. But I don’t believe they kept their oath. It reminds me that you and I won’t be without our enemies either. There will be many who come against you simply because of your faith. As a believer following Christ, you can expect scorn and ridicule and persecution. To be marginalized, to be pushed to the side, to have disfavor in culture, to have government officials and laws be written against you, to have persecution and people calling you names and saying that you aren’t people of love, but people of hate. And on and on and on the list goes. You can expect that. Jesus put it this way in Matthew 5:11, it says, “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for my sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly God, for great is your reward in heaven. For so they persecuted the prophets even before you.”
You and I, we just need to make sure that our persecution is for righteousness sake and not because we’re in the flesh. A lot of times, believers will do something, you know, that they should never be doing, and then they get backlash and they go, “Oh, I’m being persecuted from the law and being persecuted by the world or being persecuted….” When, all the while, you’re just suffering the consequences of your bad behavior. You want to walk in righteousness and honor God with your life, come what may.
Well, as the plot is thickening there, Paul’s nephew, if you notice three times he was called a young man, which is where I really think it’s important for us to pause here and speak to those of you listening to me that are young men and young women among us, both here in the room and out online and on the radio, the young men as well as the moms and the dads and the grandmothers and the grandfathers and the aunts and the uncles among us – but especially the young people.
It’s important that you hear me out. Please hear me out on this. God used a young man to save Paul’s life. God used a young person to save his life. Which tells me that God wants to use you no matter how old you are. God wants to use you at whatever age you are. Reminded me of Second Chronicles chapter 34. A time in the life of the nation of Israel, where it says in verse one, “Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned 31 years in Jerusalem. And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, and walked in the ways of his father David. And he did not turn aside to the right hand or to the left.” Does God use eight year old boys for his glory? Yes! And seven. And six. And ten. Parents, God wants to use your kids in mighty ways. He wants our kids to rise up and be counted, to be used mightily of him. God’s hand is on every generation, church.
And it’s important, you know, for years, for the last few years, we as a leadership team have been working very, very hard and praying very, very diligently and rearranging all the areas of ministry as it relates to the youth of our church in order to help disciple them and help them. We want to help the kids and we want to help the parents. We want to equip you. We want to train you. We want to stir you. We want to create an environment where the kids can learn about Jesus and grow in his grace and be used in their age. In this church, you know, we made a fundamental difference. I made a fundamental difference in my approach many years ago because I think in the early years, you might even listen to some of my old Bible studies. I would say something like, you know, “okay kids,” and this would be in all sincerity, to kind of stir up the young people. I’d say, “okay kids, I just want you to know you are the future of the church.”
That is not a true statement: you are the future of the church. Let me give you the truth right now. This is the truth. You are not the future of the church. Listen, you are the church. Right now! You do not need to wait for some age for you to participate in the life of the church. Of course you need to be born again, for sure. But every born again man, woman, and child is presently the Church and lives in such a way, and should live in such a way, that you’re fulfilling God’s will for your life. You know, even an eight-year-old king.
And I know he had handlers. I mean, we’re not going to hand the church van keys to an eight year old today and say, okay, go ahead. You know, drive on, go get us some gas or something. Okay? Like there’s wisdom in this, right? We’re going to have an age-appropriate ministry, age-appropriate discipleship. But it’s time for the youth to rise up. And it’s time for us as adults to make it happen for them; to create an environment for them; to help disciple them and encourage them; and to help them be who God has called them to be. Not to look down on them because of their age.
No matter…remember what Paul told Timothy? What, as he took in his mid-30s, who was given the leadership of the church in Ephesus. And Paul had to write to him and say, “Let no one despise your youth” (1 Tim 4:12). And that’s something that we can give, those of us that are not so young. You know, there are layers of age in here and the layers of generations. And there are some of us, some among us, that are not young. Did you know that you are not young? And then there’s another layer. You’re not “young,” young. And then there’s another one that you’re not “young, young,” young like all of us. And here’s where we have to pause just for a moment to speak to that.
Because here’s what happens. Those of us that are not so “young, young,” young. Or let’s just be…those of you that are older. All right, let’s just say it. This intimidates you and kind of upsets you sometimes because here’s what happens. You start thinking, “Oh, there it is, pastor. All he cares about the youth, all he cares about…to you, this church is all about the youth. And they’re going to overlook me. And they’re not going to think of me.” And I’m like, just…stop. That’s not true. It’s 100% not true. But I’ll tell you where that comes from. It comes from a place where you’re not willing to release to the young. It comes from a place where you’re thinking more of yourself than you’re thinking of others. It comes from a place where perhaps the Lord is dealing with you. To think that you know there is room for you in this church, but there’s also room for the kids. There is room for you in this church, and there’s a need for you in this church, but there’s also a need for the kids. And it’s together, multi-generational is how a church is intended to be strong and in unity for the sake of reaching the world.
And so don’t think for a moment that we’re going to overlook you for your age, and don’t think for a moment that we’re just going to…just because, you know, you’re like, “all this new stuff, and all this new music, and all this new technology, and all this new…what about us?” Hey, what about you? You had new technology as well. You had time as well. And so what we’re inviting you to do is let’s come along and let’s empower the kids.
I was thinking, “Can God use young kids?” I’ll tell you, God can use young kids in a powerful way. I thought back, I can’t help but think back, to Marie and I when we were married as unbelievers. I was a horrible man, not a good dad or husband at all, and we were in a season where we needed to find daycare for our four year old. And he’s…the daycare he was in…Eddie…he was…he hated it. He was always crying. He hated it. And we’re like, “Man, we gotta find another daycare – we gotta get him out.” And so Marie had this lady she worked with said, “hey, I just put my kid into daycare. It’s at a church right by your house.” And we’re like, “Oh.” And it was inexpensive. And so when Marie came back with that idea, I was like, “great.” Because those are two things that would be great for me.
Number one, it’s cheap. And that’s great. And number two, my kid will get religion, because I’ll never give it to him. And so we put him in. And so there he was. He was going to daycare. He was happy. Because he was a happy kid, generally. He was happy coming home with his little papers and talking about God and everything. It was great. And I remember the day like it was yesterday. I have a visual memory of little my son Eddie at four years old. He looks up at me with his big brown eyes and he says, “Daddy, do you have Jesus in your heart?” And I thought, “What in the world are they teaching my kid?” Like, what is it? What does that mean? Even I don’t even know what that means. And it was God using a four-year-old child. “Out of the mouth of babes” (Matt 21:16, Psalm 8:2).
And he was just…there was another scene. You know why? Because God knew what He had for me. God knew my future. He knew what was up ahead. He knew where He was taking me. And it started with my four-year-old kid. Oh, by the way, that four-year-old kid was birthed…praise God, we’ll praise God for that because you have your own story, right? You have your own story. But that four-year-old child was born to teenage parents – unmarried, no future. Because God knows.
God knows what he’s doing in your life too. And young people, you that are here right now. High school, junior high. Maybe you’re sitting in with your parents and you’re much younger than that. Young adults, you know, maybe in that 18- 30. I want you to listen to me. Listen carefully, because this is very important. Wherever you are, whatever sphere of influence God has given to you, whether you’re in school, whether you’re working right now, in your neighborhood, on your soccer team, in your taekwondo class, wherever you are. You need to stand strong in the grace of God and stand up, because there’s a whole bunch of young people in your life that need you. They need you. Your friends, your neighbors, the kids around you – they’re willingly following false gods. They’re involved in being hurt and manipulated and groomed and taken advantage of and let away from the truth.
Whether it’s perversion, or pornography, gender confusion, immorality, drugs, alcohol, this thing, that thing, the other thing. This generation needs you. They need you to have a strong walk with the Lord. They need you to speak into their lives, and they need you to be a good friend. They need you to pray for them. This is God’s will for your life. This world is destroying children. It’s destroying young people. The world today is more depressed than ever. Suicide rates are shooting through the roof. They’re more miserable, more lonely, more in the dark, more isolated, oppressed, depressed than in any other time. And they need a young person that they can trust. They need someone that’s in their life already saying, you know, “I’m here for you. I can help you. Let me pray for you.” However, it is in your age-appropriate way as you step into their lives. God wants you and needs you.
And really, you could say that He has anointed you to be who God has called you to be. It’s not just us that have been going before you, but we have a responsibility to help you get where God wants you to be today. The world needs young people to call out the idolatry and the pain. Like, this is what it looks like, man. If you’re on Instagram, then start using Instagram for the glory of God. If you’re on TikTok, you need to start using it for the glory of God. Like where you are, your voice needs to be heard to the people that are closest to you.
And I’m speaking again, I know this is applicable to all of us, that I’m especially speaking to you, 16 year old, 18-year-old high schooler, college student. This is your day. This is your day! This is what God’s will is for your life. I am so serious about this that, as I was putting this together this week, I was thinking, I need to do something tangible because I want you to know I mean it. I’m not…this is not just a Bible study. Just like it’s never just a Bible study. But I mean, I want you to know, I want it to be tangible for you. So here’s what I did. I have a free book available to give to any young person. So let’s say every young person high school and below. High school and below, so high school all the way down. I have a free book for you. It’s a book that pastor Chuck wrote that’s called The Man God Uses. It’s 14 characteristics of a godly man. And you can say a godly woman, a godly boy, godly girl. If you really hear me and you sense the Holy Spirit speaking to you, I want to help equip you.
So we got them on the side of the stage here – a few of them here and a few of them here – after the service. High school and below. This isn’t something I want you as a parent to come up and get for your kid. There’s a decision your kid needs to make. So it’s not like, “well, I’ll get one for my son….” You can get one for your son – we have them in the bookstore. But these are for the young people listening to me right now.
And if we run out, you can email or call the office. Tonya is going to get more. And we’ll make sure every young person that wants one that feels like the Lord speaking to them, we will have them. We will buy them by the hundreds and the thousands, if we have to, as a gift to you. ‘Cause this is how serious I am in the day in which we live? That you learn the characteristics in the inward man and the inward woman, so that you might be using. Some of you are like young adults here. And you go, “whoa, what about me, don’t you get a free book?” You can buy it! You got a job. You know. You can buy it. You got a job. But no, I mean it for you, too please. I mean it for you. But I mean the high schoolers, junior high, they don’t have jobs. And so, you know, we want to get this to them. Make sure. And so I’ve already spoken with Pastor Enrique and Keegan and our pastoral team. You read the book and we’ll talk about it. I mean, read it as homework and come and talk to us about it. They’re already ready. We want to talk you through. We want you to encourage you. We want to release you. This is something we’ve been doing for a while.
But coming across this text this week, I’m just like, “Yes, this is the time!” This is the time. And again, I’m using the word older. Just deal with it. You’re older here today. We’re all older. It’s like running a relay race, isn’t it? It’s like, that’s the picture you need, right? You’re running a relay. So we’re running our race, but then we’ve got to go out. We’re just about ready and we’ve got to hand the baton to the next generation. It’s our responsibility. They’re ready. They’re, “give it to me.” “Give it to me.” Again, yeah, we’re ready. And being able not to be so, you know, insecure and fearful like you’re going to lose something. When more people serve the Lord, we don’t lose anything; we gain! And when everyone in our church, every layer is doing what God has called them to do…and I’m just so already encouraged by the amount of participation of young people in this church and their desire to serve the Lord, their desire to be used of the Lord. It’s amazing. But there’s more! And that means five, six, eight, ten. Like, you bring your kids with you, you serve together. It’s amazing what God can do. So those books are available. If we run out, just email us or call the church and we’ll make sure we’ll get more. And I know the Lord is ready. The Lord is ready to minister.
So if you’re taking notes as we wind down, I want to give you three things about this young man that are very important to see, because there’s characteristics we want to pray over our kids, you know, like right away. You don’t even need a book. You can start reading your Bible and praying every day. The Holy Spirit will meet you there. But there are characteristics that we see in this young man, this young man who is valiant. This young man is a hero of the faith. He was used of God to save Paul. If this didn’t happen, then the plot came to pass. We would not have you understand this. We would not have most of the New Testament because this kid, this kid, and I know we use that word “kid.” And then you’re sitting there, “I’m not a kid. I’m a young adult.” Okay, kid, we know what you are, like, that’s fine. Like, we don’t mean any offense of it. It’s, like, he’s just…you’re young. It’s fine. Well, I was a kid once, too. It’s great. But, you know, God’s moving you forward. And I know it can be scary. And I know, you know, it’s like, yeah, “you don’t understand, pastor, what you said, it’s even worse than that.” I’m sure it is, from your perspective. But as a church, that’s what we’re going to trust in the Lord together.
And these are the characteristics. Number one, this young man was brave and courageous. He had some serious information. He found out about a murder plot. A murder plot! And what did he do with it? He told the authorities. That took some bravery and some courage. He went to Paul and then Paul sent him. You need to be brave and courageous and pray that over your kids, over your life, over our church. Number two, this young man, he was wise. He’s walking in wisdom. You know how we have that phrase? Some people say, “You’re wise beyond your years.” That’s this guy. That’s he’s wise beyond his years. How do we see that? Well, he told the captain the plot. He went to Paul, they sent him to the captain – to the commander. Not only did he tell him of the plot, but you can’t miss this, come back to the Bible real quick. In verse 21 he told the commander, this military captain, “Don’t yield to them.” Not only did he tell them the plot, but he gave them a recommendation. He told them what to do.
Brave. Courageous. Wise. “Don’t let that happen!” So encouraging – from a young person! And then finally, he was trustworthy. God allowed him to get some information, and he was trustworthy with it. Whenever I think of the word trustworthy, I always flip it around and remember what it means is you and I live a life where we’re worthy of trust. Where our lives are worthy. You know why? Because within ministry and other people, I like to say trust is the currency of ministry. And what I mean by that is really all of our relationships are built on trust. And the more you trust me, the more you’ll tell me, and the more you tell me, the more I can help you. That’s trust. And that’s why it stings so bad…when someone that you trust hurts you or lies to you or betrays you. Because the devil knows that as much as the Bible teaches us how important trust is.
And so I would just say, if you’ve been stung, or you’ve been burned before, don’t let that harden your heart – because you need trust. You need it, because eventually, if you lose trust with one another, your trust in God will be eroded. And you and I, we need trust. You can walk carefully and cautiously because of the herd. I understand, but trust is so important. And even so, if you’ve been hurt in the church, you’ve been hurt in this church, you’ve been hurt by another spiritual leader. I apologize, I wish it didn’t happen. But, you know, sin, it just wrecks us, man. It just wrecks us. And we need to learn to recover, repent, get back on our feet. “Though a man falls seven times, he’ll rise again” (Prov 24:16). And move forward. So he was trustworthy, and the soldier trusted his word. And notice the rest of the chapter. He trusted his word and rescued Paul.
He said in verse 23,
He called for two centurions, saying, “prepare 200 soldiers, 70 horsemen, and 200 spearmen to go to Caesarea at the third hour of the night; and provide mounts to set Paul on, and bring him safely to Felix the governor.”
And he wrote a letter in the following manner:
Claudius Lysias to the most excellent governor Felix:
Greetings.
This man was seized by the Jews, was about to be killed by them coming with the troops. I rescued him, having learned that he was a Roman. And when I wanted to know the reason they accused him, I brought him before their counsel. I found out that he was accused concerning questions of their law, but had nothing charged against them worthy of death or chains. And when it was told me that the Jews lay in wait for the man, I sent him immediately to you, and also commanded the accusers to state before you the charges against him.
Farewell.
Acts 23:23-30
So now Paul is saved. He’s surrounded by 470 armed men, and he heads off. It says in verse 31,
The soldiers, as they commanded, took Paul and brought him by night to Antipatris. The next day they left the horsemen to go on with him, and returned to the barracks. When they came to Caesarea and had delivered the letter to the governor, they also presented Paul to him. And when the governor had read it, he asked what province he was from. And when he understood that he was from Cilicia, he said, “I will hear you when your accusers also have come.” And he commanded him to be kept in Herod’s Praetorium.
Acts 23:31-25
So he was delivered, and he did get out of jail. And God did protect him. And he’s going to get another opportunity to share now, not in Jerusalem, but over in Caesarea. But he is going to get another opportunity to share, and he is there waiting for it all to come together. And I’m sure of all the emotions that Paul’s feeling in the praetorium in Caesarea, he has to be comforted by the faithfulness of God. And here’s the thing you got to understand – he is not out of the trial.
We’re at the end of the chapter, but he’s in the middle of the trial. That’s how life is. We kind of think like, okay, I finally got there. I finally got there. It’s all going to end here. But no, God’s taking us, as we read in the Psalm today, “from strength to strength and glory to glory.” We all are desperate to be delivered from our trials. And for things that are hard right now to end. And we say, “Amen to that, Lord.” “I beg you, take this thorn.” “I beg you to bring my son back.” “I beg you to save my marriage.” Yes, yes, yes. And then we expect that that is exactly what’s going to happen immediately. But, many times, you’re still in the trial.
But yet God’s faithful. You’re still in the trial. And yet He did encourage you. You’re still in the trial, but you made it another day. You’re still in the trial. But you got soldiers all around you, protecting you. You know, he was threatened by 40 cowards, and God protected him with 470 military men that were paid for by the government itself, and giving him another chance to share in a whole new group of people. I know it’s hard. The harder things are in the world in which we live, and no matter what we’re facing today, trust in God, church. Would you? Please.
And young people: rise up. Step into the story that God has for you – early – not later. And then those of us that may not consider ourselves so young, it’s God’s Word for you to step up, too. Step into the story. These are the last days. That’s not just a quick phrase or a bumper sticker. This is it. We are closer, as the Bible says, to the coming of the Lord than any other time in human history (Romans 13:11). And yet we’re still here. Which Jesus reminds us that we’re here for a purpose, to be the church in our community.
The world is always going to be the world, but the church is the only men and women and boys and girls that can be the church in a dark world – salt and light. And so I commend you to the faith that you have in God and build it up. And remember, if you’re a young person today, high school and under, take my gift. Take me seriously. Jump in. Give yourself to God. I know you have a full life. I know you got homework. I know you got school. I know you got sports. I know. I know, but you also have a God that loves you, and a church that supports you. And we’re ready to help you become all that God wants you to be. Amen? Amen.
Lord, thank You for Your Word, and our desire here, just encouraged by this text, encouraged by this week, Lord, and…help us, young and old, and even everyone in between, to live out the life that you’ve given us in a way that pleases and honors you.
In Jesus name, Amen.
